Schools to Compete for Funding in Obama Reform Plan

JIM LEHRER:

President Obama set his sights today on education reform. He announced a major injection of federal aid to the nation's schools in exchange for results.

Judy Woodruff has our lead story report.

JUDY WOODRUFF:

Dubbed "Race to the Top," the program calls for schools across the country to compete for more than $4.3 billion in grants.

At the U.S. Department of Education today, the president laid out how states and school districts can win a piece of the pie.

U.S. President BARACK OBAMA:

If you set and enforce rigorous and challenging standards and assessments, if you put outstanding teachers at the front of the classroom, if you turn around failing schools, your state can win a "Race to the Top" grant that will not only help students out-compete workers around the world, but let them fulfill their God-given potential.

JUDY WOODRUFF:

To qualify, school systems have to make changes that include: conforming to national standards; placing no limits on the numbers of charter schools; and linking improvements in student performance to increases in teacher pay.

But several states already are at odds with the requirements of the plan. California, New York, and Wisconsin prohibit student performance data from being linked to teacher evaluations.

And while teacher unions have largely praised the president's goals, they've also voiced concern about the effects on teacher pay and tenure.

In today's Washington Post, Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, said there is still a lot to discuss. She said, quote, "The devil really is in the details. On the issues where you have differences, you try to work those out."

The amount of money is also raising some eyebrows. Education Secretary Arne Duncan has more to spend on this program than all of the discretionary spending by all of his predecessors combined.

Congressman John Kline of Minnesota, ranking Republican on the House Education and Labor Committee, says it's a bad idea. He told the Post, "We just took a big, old checkbook and handed it to the secretary and said, 'Write a whole bunch of checks.' I'm uncomfortable that we're doing that."

Still, Secretary Duncan says the program is already making a difference. I spoke with him this afternoon at the Department of Education.

Secretary Arne Duncan, thank you very much for talking with us.

ARNE DUNCAN, Secretary of Education: Thanks for giving me the opportunity. I appreciate it.